Laws Governing Lands in Kenya

Many people have been conned,many people have bought land that is not on sale and many others have also been given fake title deeds possibly because they do not really understand the laws that govern land owning in Kenya.

Feb 7, 2021 - 08:54

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As stipulated by the Kenyan constitution, there exists public, community and also private land. What is public land according to the Kenyan constitution article 62?
(a)Land which at the effective date was unalienated government land as defined by an Act of parliament in force at the effective date.
(b)Land lawfully held,used or occupied by any state organ, except any such land that is occupied by the state organ as lessee under private lease.
(c)Land transferred to the state by the way of sale, reversion or surrender.
(d) Land in respect of which no individual or community ownership can be established by any legal process.
(e)Land in respect of which no heir can be identified by any legal process;
(f)All minerals and mineral oils we defined by law.
(g) Government forests other than forests to which Article 63(d)(I)applies, government game reserves,water catchment areas, national parks, government animal sanctuaries ,and specially protected areas.
(h)All roads and thoroughfares provided for by an Act of parliament.
(i)All rivers, lakes and other water bodies as defined by an Act of parliament.
(j)The territorial sea ,the exclusive economic zone and the sea bed.
(k)The continental shelf.
(l)All land between the high and low water marks.
(m)Any land not classified as private or community land under the Kenyan constitution
(n)Any other land declared to be public land by an Act of parliament.;
(i) in force at the effective date.
(ii) enacted after the effective date.

Public land shall vest in and be held by a county government in trust for the people resident in the county, and shall be administered on their behalf by the national Land commission.

Public land classified under clause (1)(f) to (m)shall vest in and be held by the national government in trust for the people of Kenya and Shall be administered on their behalf by the national Land Commission.
(4) Public land shall not be disposed of or otherwise used except in terms of an Act of parliament specifying the nature and terms of that disposal or use.

Community land
There is also community land as stipulated by the Kenyan constitution article 63 the following are some of the laws that allows a land to be called community land;
(1) Community land shall vest in and be held by communities identified on the basis of ethnicity, culture or similar community of interest.
(2)Community land consists of-
(a) Land lawfully registered in the name of group representatives under the provisions of any law;
(b)Land lawfully transferred to a specific community by any process of law;
(c)Any other land declared to be Community land by an Act of parliament.
(d)Land that is-
(i) Lawfully held,managed or user by specific communities as Community forests, grazing areas or shrines;
(ii) Ancestral lands and lands traditionally occupied by hunter-gatherer communities, or
(iii) Lawfully held as trust land by the county of government,
But not including any public land held in trust by the county government under Article 62(2)
(3)Any unregistered community land shall be held trust by county government on behalf of the communities for which it is held.
(4) Community land shall not be disposed of or otherwise used except in terms of legislation specifying the nature and extent of the rights of members of each community individually and collectively.
(5) Parliament shall enact legislation to give effect to this article.

Private land(article 64 kenyan constitution)

(a) Registered land held by any person under any freehold tenure.
(b)Land held by any person under leasehold tenure
(c)Any other land declared private land under the act of parliament.
Private land can be sold but community land is not owned by an individual, so it is the entire group to agree, for what purpose they are going to put it. Public land is held by the land commission in trust for the public. It is not sold but put into use that will benefit the people.Parliament decides into what use to put it.
Thus the public or any other person buying a land should put into consideration the type of land he or she is buying so as to know the laws that govern tht particular piece of land so as to avoid problems such as fraud.